A Novel Glycolysis-related Gene Signature for Survival Prediction in Patients with Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma
Abstract Background: Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is most diagnosed at an advanced stage with poor prognosis. Single gene biomarkers cannot have enough predictive ability in HNSCC. Glycolysis participating in cancers was verified. Thus, this study aimed to identify glycolysis-related gene signature predict the outcome of HNSCC. Methods: The mRNA expression data of HNSCC downloaded The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) project was analyzed by Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (GSEA). We use the Cox proportional regression model to construct a prognostic model. Kaplan–Meier and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were employed to estimate the signature. We also analyzed the relationship of the signature and cancer subtypes. Results: We identified nine glycolysis-related genes including G6PD, EGFR, ALDH2, GPR87, STC2, PDK3, ELF3, STC1 and GNPDA1 as prognosis-related genes signature in HNSCC. HNSCC patients were divided into high and low risk group according to the signature. High risk group showed more poor prognosis and the risk score can precisely predict the prognosis of HNSCC. Additionally, the signature also can be used in cancer subtypes. Conclusion: This study established the 9-mRNA glycolysis signature which may serve as a prospective biomarker for prognosis and novel treatment target in HNSCC.